Breaking News

Boulder can create a successful municipal utility, consultant says

The city analysis that shows Boulder can create a municipal utility that is less polluting and cheaper than Xcel Energy was endorsed Tuesday by an independent evaluation commissioned by the city.

"There isn't any stone we didn't turn, there isn't any question we didn't ask," Greg Booth, president of the North Carolina-based consulting firm PowerServices, told the Boulder City Council.

Booth, however, issued a caveat that the final judgment on the economic feasibility of a municipal utility will depend on the cost of power.

"At the end of the day, 65 to 70 percent of your costs will be purchase power agreements," Booth said.

Those agreements will determine whether there are competitive retail rates, Booth said.

Xcel, Colorado's largest electricity provider, opposes the municipal utility proposal and has challenged the Boulder analysis, arguing it is overly optimistic and may be flawed.

"It is hard to know what's in it," Xcel spokeswoman Michelle Aguayo said in an earlier interview.

The PowerServices review generally vetted the Boulder city staff's modeling, which shows that in many scenarios a municipal utility could provide cheaper electricity while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

PowerServices was paid $49,500 to review the city's analysis.

The analysis shows that over a 20-year span, Xcel's rate would be 15.25 cents for a kilowatt-hour and a Boulder municipal utility could offer electricity for about 6 percent less.

Advertisement

"The real question is did the assumptions track with the real-world data?" Boulder Mayor Matt Appelbaum asked.

Boot replied, "You have sufficient number of options in there that are doable and achievable."

Lockheed says object part of 'sensor technology' testing that ended ThursdayWhat the heck is that thing? It's fair to assume that question was on the minds of many people who traveled along Colo. 128 south of Boulder this week if they happened to catch a glimpse of what appeared to be a large, silver projectile perched alongside the highway and pointed north toward town.

PARIS (AP) — Bye, New York! Ciao, Milan! Bonjour, Paris! The world's largest traveling circus of fashion editors, models, buyers and journalists has descended on the French capital, clutching their metro maps and city guides, to cap the ready-to-wear fashion season. Full Story